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(NOTE: As the number of Y-DNA samples increases, the
specific definitions of Haplogroups continue to improve and offer much more
detail into the history of each Haplogroup. Should the reader find the
following definitions of Haplogroups (effective as of 2005) to be too vague, or
if the Haplogroup being sought does not exist in the following list, it is
suggested that the reader click
hereto be redirected to the Wikipedia (free online encyclopedia)
website. Once there, merely enter the entire Haplogroup being sought into
the search engine and a complete, up-to-date definition of any Haplogroup should
appear.)

FTDNA
provided
summaries of the following haplogroups in 2005. The reader should keep in
mind that the designation of Haplogroups will continue to change as additional
data and research provides further insight into the distant origin of
mankind. For up-to-date information on current designations, click
here to go to the Frequently Asked Questions on Haplogroups at the
FTDNA site.

Haplogroup B is one of the oldest
Y-chromosome lineages in humans. Haplogroup B is found exclusively in
Africa. This lineage was the first to disperse around Africa. There is
current archaeological evidence supporting a major population expansion in
Africa approximately 90-130 thousand years ago. It has been proposed that
this event may have spread Haplogroup B throughout Africa. Haplogroup B
appears at low frequency all around Africa, but is at its highest frequency
in Pygmy populations.

Haplogroup C is found throughout
mainland Asia, the south Pacific, and at low frequency in Native American
populations. Haplogroup C originated in southern Asia and spread in all
directions. This lineage colonized New Guinea, Australia, and north Asia,
and currently is found with its highest diversity in populations of India.

Haplogroup C3 is believed to have
originated in southeast or central Asia. This lineage then spread into
northern Asia, and then into the Americas.

Haplogroup D2 most likely derived from
the D lineage in Japan. It is completely restricted to Japan, and is a very
diverse lineage within the aboriginal Japanese and in the Japanese
population around Okinawa.

Haplogroup E3a is an Africa lineage.
It is currently hypothesized that this haplogroup dispersed south from
northern Africa within the last 3,000 years, by the Bantu agricultural
expansion. E3a is also the most common lineage among African Americans.

Haplogroup E3b is believed to have
evolved in the Middle East. It expanded into the Mediterranean during the
Pleistocene Neolithic expansion. It is currently distributed around the
Mediterranean, southern Europe, and in north and east Africa.

Haplogroup G may have originated in
India or Pakistan, and has dispersed into central Asia, Europe, and the
Middle East. The G2 branch of this lineage (containing the P15 mutation) is
found most often in Europe and the Middle East.

Haplogroups I, I1, and I1a are nearly
completely restricted to northwestern Europe. These would most likely have
been common within Viking populations. One lineage of this group extends
down into central Europe.

Haplogroup I1b was derived within
Viking/Scandinavian populations in northwest Europe and has since spread
down into southern Europe where it is present at low frequencies.

Haplogroup J is found at highest
frequencies in Middle Eastern and north African populations where it most
likely evolved. This marker has been carried by Middle Eastern traders into
Europe, central Asia, India, and Pakistan.

Haplogroup J2 originated in the
northern portion of the Fertile Crescent where it later spread throughout
central Asia, the Mediterranean, and south into India. As with other
populations with Mediterranean ancestry this lineage is found within Jewish
populations. The Cohen modal lineage is found in Haplogroup J2.

Haplogroup O1 is found at very
high frequency in the aboriginal Taiwanese (possibly due to genetic drift).
This haplogroup probably originated in East Asia and later migrated into the
south Pacific. Individuals carrying this lineage are thought to have been
important in the expansion of the Austronesian language group into Taiwan,
Indonesia, Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia.

Haplogroup O2 has two primary lines, the 465 line and the M95 line.
Both lines are found in Asia. The 465 line is at high frequency in Japanese
and Korean populations and at low frequency in east Asia. The M95 line is
found in Southeast Asian populations (Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, and
southern China).

Haplogroup Q is the lineage that links
Asia and the Americas. This lineage is found in North and Central Asian
populations as well as native Americans. This lineage is believed to have
originated in Central Asia and migrated through the Altai/Baikal region of
northern Eurasia into the Americas.

Haplogroup Q3 is the only lineage
strictly associated with native American populations. This haplogroup is
defined by the presence of the M3 mutation (also known as SY103). This
mutation occurred on the Q lineage 8-12 thousand years ago as the migration
into the Americas was underway. There is some debate as to on which side of
the Bering Strait this mutation occurred, but it definitely happened in the
ancestors of the Native American peoples.

Haplogroup R1a is believed to have
originated in the Eurasian Steppes north of the Black and Caspian Seas. This
lineage is believed to have originated in a population of the Kurgan
culture, known for the domestication of the horse (approximately 3000 B.C.).
These people were also believed to be the first speakers of the
Indo-European language group. This lineage is currently found in central and
western Asia, India, and in Slavic populations of Eastern Europe.

Haplogroup R1b is the most common
haplogroup in European populations. It is believed to have expanded
throughout Europe as humans re-colonized after the last glacial maximum
10-12 thousand years ago. This lineage is also the haplogroup containing the
Atlantic modal haplotype (HG1).